Nintendo Switch Owners Say the Console is Falling Apart

While the Nintendo Switch has gotten a lot of positive press since its March 3 launch, including reports of record-breaking sales in the U.S., the system has also been plagued by users complaining about various defects with the hardware. Now, the latest Switch controversy is playing out on Reddit, where some fans are posting photos claiming their consoles are literally falling apart less than one month after release.

The latest thread to take off on the Nintendo Switch subreddit is entitled, “Check the back of your Switch, cracks forming near power button!” In the post, Reddit user Chiablo provides some visual evidence of what he claims is shoddy manufacturing.

“I treat my Switch like a princess, never been dropped or abused in any way. This morning I noticed a small crack on the upper right corner of the back of my Switch,” Chiablo writes.

After posting three photos of the alleged crack, Chiablo goes on to wonder if the problem is occurring due to an over-tightened screw putting stress on the Switch enclosure. The thread is now above 200 comments and while some are skeptical, others have pointed out that Chiablo is not alone.

User Dakosquash pointed out that simply searching the word “crack” on r/NintendoSwitch will lead to hundreds of comments across multiple threads. While some of the other threads seem to blame the Nintendo Switch kickstand for causing an issue, there are several other users theorizing, with visual evidence, that an over-tightened screw could be to blame.

Here’s another photo from user Jtobiansky posted two days ago which seems to show a similar crack in the same spot as Chiablo’s Switch:

Clearly, this problem is not significantly widespread but it also seems to be affecting more than just a couple of people. It’s likely that cracks from a defective screw would be covered under Nintendo’s warranty, but until Nintendo actually confirms there’s a defect, it may be difficult for these fans to get their systems serviced, as a crack could also be the result of accidental damage. Nintendo has also been less than sympathetic about some of the other defects that have been reported, like when some gamers claimed that a bent Switch dock is responsible for scratching their systems.

Then again, Nintendo also came up with an easy fix for the Joy-Con connectivity issue by having their customer support team insert a piece of foam into the left Joy-Con, so it’s clear the Big N will leap into action if they can actually confirm the issue. Still, this latest controversy regarding cracked systems is only going to further cement the idea among some in the Switch community that Nintendo rushed its latest system out the door half-baked.

Game Rant has reached out to Nintendo for comment on this story and will update as necessary.